the eternal student

When not to give blood

I have given blood about twice a year with no problems. However, yesterday I had only five hours of sleep (I forgot I was giving blood that day) and ended up blacking out at the very end. All I remember was they were almost done and I said "I feel dizzy". Then I fell into this very intense dream-I don't remember it but it felt like forever- and waking up to a nurse calling my name. They then said I was "very strong". Apparently when I blacked out I pulled my arm up with with the needle still in it. It took three nurses to bring it back down. They were amazingly calm when I woke up. Next time, I'll get more sleep.
As a plug, GIVE BLOOD. Most cities only have a 2 or 3 day supply of blood on hand. Your minor discomfort is somebody's life.

Camping Bliss

This past weekend we spent 3 days at Last Chance Campground in New Meadows, Idaho -about 3 hours from our house in Boise. Almost every weekend in the summer, the Vineyard Boise "Let's Tend the Garden" group participates in helping the National Forest Service with Trail Maintenance. Sounded right up my alley. We headed out early afternoon Friday and met the other Vineyard people at our free campground. Nice secluded area in the woods with a river. Fortunately there were a couple of other families with young kids so Lynn and the boys had a good time Saturday while I helped build rock walls, clear trail, and get to know some of the other men at Vineyard with similar interests as mine. We stayed Saturday night also. Sunday was spent driving around, swimming at Ponderosa State Park, and exploring more of Idaho.

A new awesome feature of Flickr is that you can geotag your photos onto a map. To check out where we took out pictures at Last Chance Campground and Payatte Lake, then click

I'm learning to cook in a cast iron skillet over a fire. Made the best eggs and pancakes I've ever made while camping.

Gideon had a natural casting hand but needs to work on his patience.

Phineas pretty much was a wild animal crawling around the whole weekend in the dirt. He was in heaven.

Fishing in Payatte Lake. Gideon casts almost better than me!

We still fit in the wagon - 2 adults, 3 boys, and a dog. I'm looking at a roof rack and possibly buying a Toyota Previa. We've got to do something soon!

Finally, here is a fun slideshow of Phineas.

Father's Day 2007

Father's Day this year was great. Lynn made some kicking pancakes for breakfast and they boys made me these cards. I'm a pretty big fan of how Gideon draws his vehicles-check out the fire engine.

In the afternoon I got to float down the Boise River for the first time this season. Nothing better than just 2 hours of floating on a river.

I learn compassion for the sick again

Having just sat town at the restaurant and looking forward to a nice spicy Thai meal, Phineas promptly throws up...hot dogs to boot. Throw up may not quite describe it as much as projectile vomit.
The bug made its way around our family this weekend. Saturday evening Isaac threw up just as Lynn made it to the store. Later tha tnight Gideon and I were taking turns throwing up. Gideon was hilarous and a great trooper- I'll leave it to Lynn to give the quotes.
As I was laying on the bed in sickness and leaning over the toilet- I was reminded of how many people are in dire pain everyday. The reflection brought back some much needed perspective.

This video is not for the faint of heart. I thought it was perhaps fake until what I experienced this weekend.

Maternity Hot Dogs

We love having yard sales. Partly because we get rid of junk and make money, but mostly because we get to have people come to our house and share with them. It was brutally hot (not humid) at near 100 degrees but we still had a great turnout. Lynn made homemade pumpkin bread and lemonade. We definitely drank more than we sold.
We got rid of my PhD desk! Thanks to Amy and Duffy for giving it to us in a much needed time. Now that I"m done with my PhD I had to sell it to clear my mind.


Check out the pics for Arlo's first swimming lesson at Lucky Peak. I love water, especially in hot hot weather.